Revisión narrativa de la relación entre envidia y Schadenfreude

Abstract

Envy and Schadenfreude are negative emotions. Envy promotes social comparison as well as the desire to have something that is possessed by another, while Schadenfreude involves a rewarding feeling derived from the pleasure obtained for misfortune happening to the envied person. Both emotions hinder social relationships. This narrative review is based on the state of the art on the relationship between envy and Schadenfreude. A review of these concepts was carried out and social psychology and neuroscience experimental studies were analyzed. The findings indicate that the literature reviewed focuses on four factors that relate envy and Schadenfreude: 1) brain activation, 2) social conditions, 3) empathy, and 4) the merit system. Additionally, the literature showed the possibility that envy could be a predictor of Schadenfreude, which would provide basis for new research studies to test this hypothesis.